Russia-Ukraine Crisis: What CEOs Are Saying

ByWilliam Mauldin

Global companies are starting to spread bad news to investors about how the Russia-Ukraine crisis is affecting their businesses and adding uncertainty to future revenues. Some Western sanctions could hurt corporate sales and even provoke Russian retaliation against companies with business in that part of the world.

The comments below from CEOs and other top executives are taken from recent conference calls with company executives.

MasterCard

A Citigroup banking card with a MasterCard logo sits in a payment machine at the cash desk inside a Dixy supermarket in Moscow.

Bloomberg News

“I don’t think this is a saber-rattling situation any longer, I think this is going to be tough to work for almost everybody, governments and companies, over the next few months or periods of time—it might last longer than that,” said Ajay Banga, chief executive of MasterCard Inc.

“The current geopolitical issues are impacting more the ruble and the…hryvnia as opposed to a basic consumer demand because they’ve devalued. Input costs have gone up, and therefore, consumer prices have had to go up,” said Indra Nooyi, chief executive of PepsiCo Inc.

Visa

A sign advertising Visaand Mastercard Inc. payment services sits in the window of a Crocs shoe store in a Moscow shopping mall in April.

Bloomberg News

“We really are still trying to understand ourselves exactly how this could play itself out. But still are hopeful that we still have a meaningful opportunity to continue to participate in the growing electronic payments business in Russia,” said Charlie Scharf, chief executive of Visa Inc.

Caterpillar

A Caterpillar dump truck collects diamond ore from an excavator operating in the open pit of the Nyurbinsky diamond mine in Nakyn, Russia, in 2013.

Bloomberg News

“While we are hopeful that the situation in Russia and the Ukraine will be resolved, if it does get worse and has an impact on business confidence, world trade, and world growth, it could certainly be a negative for us,” said Mike DeWalt, Caterpillar Inc.’s vice president for strategic services.

McDonald’s

Men stand at the entrance of a closed McDonald's restaurant in Sevastopol on April 5, 2014.

Agence France-Presse/Getty Images

“We had three restaurants in Crimea that have been closed due to suspension of necessary financial and banking services,” said Don Thompson, chief executive of McDonald’s Corp. “Our restaurants generally are operating as normal.”

Belmond

“The continued tension in the region has led to a decline in travel into Russia by certain markets,” said John Scott, chief executive of Belmond, previously known as Orient-Express Hotels Ltd. “These cancellations are primarily from the United States and the European Union.”

Hyster-Yale

“Conditions are certainly unsettled there, both in terms of currency, availability of credit, and the unpredictability, at this point, of the market,” said Al Rankin, chief executive of Hyster-Yale Materials Handling Inc., the Cleveland-based forklift company. “In some other countries in eastern Europe, there’s some slowing down because of the turmoil associated with the other countries that are threatened, perhaps, by Russia’s actions and internal discontent.”

Mohawk

“It’s a small part of the total business, but if the world blows up and things go crazy, we will have to react,” said Jeff Lorberbaum, chief executive of Mohawk Industries Inc., a tile and flooring manufacturer.

Avon

“Consumer spending patterns have been further impacted by the political situation between Russia and the Ukraine. We are supporting our teams in Eastern Europe as they navigate these challenges,” said Sheri McCoy, chief executive of Avon Products Inc.

Maxwell Technologies

“Our microelectronics revenue is being adversely impacted by the United States hold on granting export licenses to Russia. If the export license hold continues for the remainder of the year, we stand to lose up to $2 million,” said John Warwick, chief operating officer of Maxwell Technologies Inc., which makes special chips that can withstand solar flares for satellites.

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